Thanksgiving is coming up quick, so it’s time to start planning menus. One of my favorite staples for the meal is mashed potatoes. But not just any mashed potatoes, oh no! Mashed potatoes that, if eaten on a regular basis, could quite possibly kill you. I got this recipe from The Cat Who… Cookbook by Julie Murphy and Sally Abney Stempinski, a cookbook based on the Cat Who… mystery series by Lilian Jackson Braun. The series has been around for decades, and the main character likes to eat… a lot. Murphy and Stempinski wrote the cookbook based on the meals the characters eat in the book. This cookbook is filled with great recipes (especially the pies!) and this is one that shows up on my table every Thanksgiving. (Okay, I tried to be sensitive to some relatives’ cholesterol issues and skipped them one year: I heard about my oversight for months. Point taken.) In the cookbook, this mashed potato recipe is called Thanksgiving Potatoes, which is a fine name. But in my house, we call them Death By Mashed Potatoes.

Death by Mashed Potatoes

Ingredients
10 potatoes, peeled and quartered
water for boiling potatoes
1 8-oz package cream cheese, room temperature
1 cup sour cream
garlic powder, to taste
milk, warmed
salt and pepper to taste
chives to taste
butter or margarine, melted

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place potatoes in a large saucepan; cover with salted water. Boil until soft; drain.
3. While potatoes are boiling, mix cream cheese, sour cream and garlic powder with electric mixer until smooth.
4. Add hot potatoes to mixture slowly, beating well. Mix in milk, if desired, for a creamier consistency. Add salt, pepper, and chives.
5. Place in baking dish. Brush top with melted butter or margarine. Bake for 30 minutes.

Serves 8-10 (I would say more like 14-16).

Give them a try this year. You’ll thank me later! And if you’ve already got your meal planned, these potatoes would also be great with the Flying Hen’s Barbecued Rib recipe.